New Orange Download Tool
Orange have released a new download test tool that allows you to upload applications so that they can be downloaded via WAP.
You have to register as an Orange partner to use the tool. However, this is worth doing anyway as Orange offer a wealth of technical and market information on their developer web site. Most of this information is applicable to developing for any network operator and not just Orange.
In theory, setting up your own WAP server to host applications isn’t that difficult. Any Unix or Microsoft server can be used. It’s just a case of adding the appropriate mime types on the web server, uploading the applications via FTP and pointing the phone at the applications.
In practice, things tend to be a bit more tricky with some devices wanting to download via a WAP (.wml) page rather than fetching the .SIS or .JAR directly. Also, it’s nice to have some kind of web based auto-upload mechanism rather than having to use FTP. Going one step further, it’s possible to send a WAP push message to the phone to present the download web address (URL) to the user rather than them having to type it in. Since this is a common requirement for just about all the freelance work I do, I have previously set up such a system at http://www.smsapp.com/ that anyone can use.